Marinette and the Secret Garden
by ForeverAReaderAWriter
Summary: One day Adrien notices Marinette dressed unusually. Curious as a kitty he decides to follow her and find out what she's up to. Little does he know he's about to learn the secret language of flowers (2 shot) [Marichat]
1. Chapter 1 : Summer

Adrien was wandering the streets by himself, his shoot ended up being cancelled and Nino wasn't able to hang out with him today.

The DJ on a date with Alya.

Adrien didn't exactly want to go home, enjoying his freedom outside of his empty house, even if he was alone.

That's when he saw Marinette who was carrying an old looking backpack.

Her outfit was not her normal casual, instead she looked to be wearing dark brown pants similar to what her mother generally wore. A yellow plaid button up was thrown over a plain white top.

She looked as if she was going to work, but Adrien wasn't aware that she had a job outside the bakery.

Adrien couldn't help but be curious.

Did Marinette have some sort of secret?

Well the blond didn't have anything better to do...

He could keep a secret!

And Marinette didn't have to know...

Adrien ducked into a subway, hoping to be quick since Marinette seemed to be walking quite fast.

"Plagg-" Adrien paused as he checked his pocket. The cat Kwami had chosen to take a nap while Adrien wandered restlessly.

Adrien sighed.

It wasn't like he hadn't sucked Plagg into the ring while he was sleeping before.

If anything it was better because it meant Plagg wouldn't be able to tease him about Marinette.

"Claws out," Adrien whispered, being careful not to wake the little devil.

Soon Chat Noir was racing over rooftops scrambling to find Marinette who was moving fast.

When Adrien spotted her, he moved to the ground, noticing there was a lack of people in the area made him nervous about Marinette's safety.

He frowned when she disappeared down a narrow alley way.

He looked around before following her, recognizing the scenery a bit.

They were a street behind a busy more touristy section of Paris. Probably boarding between quiet homes and a high traffic tourist area.

Sometimes Gorilla had avoided traffic with this road.

Adrien blanched as he saw Marinette squeeze between two building in an incredibly narrow alley way.

He gulped as he felt his body uncomfortably get pressed between the walls as he pushed himself through to follow her. He wasn't close to being stuck... but it wasn't anywheres near comfortable.

The first thing Adrien did was hide when he got to the other side.

The second was look at his surroundings.

Adrien touched the leaves and vines that covered his hiding place.

A trellis. It was situated in the corner of the space, on a diagonal.

Brushing leaves aside, Adrien peeked out through the metal structure.

The space was very narrow and rectangular.

On the other end were two more buildings, closing in on the area like some kind of misplaced space. A glitch in the matrix. The twilight zone.

The buildings on the other end emitted sound and traffic could be heard through the even narrower slit between the two structures.

The only entrance was where Adrien had came from.

Adrien pursed his lips. This wasn't very safe.

What would bring Marinette to such a place?

Adrien's eyes widened as he looked again. It had been easy to miss the first time because there was so much of it.

But now he could clearly see the fact that he was in some sort of secret garden.

A small bench was in the corner adjacent to him and there was a small plastic tub next to it with a few bags of soil or fertilizer.

But everything else was alive.

Adrien was floored. There were plants, shrubs, bushes and flowers everywhere.

The space was beautiful.

Adrien's gaze wandered and then found Marinette, who was shrugging her backpack onto the bench and pulling out a few 4 Litre plastic milk containers. She bent over and plucked a metal watering can out from under the bench as she poured a milk container's contents into it. It was obviously fresh water that she had lugged a great distance.

Marinette whipped out her phone and placed it on the bench before moving towards the flower boxes.

Music started to play from the phone as Marinette began to water the plants. She even hummed and sang along, returning to the bench for a refill every now and then.

When she was done, she placed the watering can back under the bench before turning to the little plastic tub.

Marinette fished out gardening gloves and a rake.

She went to work weeding, looking as happy as could be despite the manual labour.

Adrien found himself transfixed.

He'd never realized how much work went into gardens, even though he often had photo shoots at stunning flower filled places such as the Luxembourg Gardens.

After weeding she grabbed a pair of shears from under the bench's and proceeded to trim some of the unruly bushes and shrubs.

Next she was transplanting some potted flowers that he hadn't noticed as well as planting small slips.

While she was packing the weeds into a plastic bag and shoving it into her back back, Adrien realized something important.

He was stuck in his spot. There was no way for him to slip out undetected. The space was so small she'd definitely notice him.

There was no quick way to slip out the only exit.

He sighed. He was just going to have to wait until she left first.

His father was going to kill him. Especially when Gabriel found out the shoot had been cancelled.

Adrien wasn't in a hurry, instead fascinated by everything she did.

When he assumed she was done, she surprised him by instead, sitting on the ground in the centre of the little garden and started talking to her plants.

The music still played softly in the background but her voice was clear enough for him to hear.

"So the funniest thing happened today! I got my Mama to talk about when her and Papa met because it's like one of the best love stories ever!" Marinette gushed, hands moving as expressively as ever, as if she was talking to a regular person and not a plant.

Adrien was interested by the story, tilting his head slightly to hear better.

"You know it's the one that reminds me there's hope for me, because Papa was so shy he couldn't even talk to Mama! He even dropped a cheesecake once because she walked into the shop looking for him," Marinette giggled at this point, a petite hand covering her mouth.

Adrien smiled. Both the story and Marinette filled him with a warm feeling.

"So he communicated with her through gifts!" Marinette continued, voice changing to mimic Tom, "Because there was no google translate then!"

She proceeded to burst out laughing at her impression of her Dad.

"He used to bake her a lot of treats, even learning some traditional Chinese desserts to make her. But. He sealed the deal when he discovered she loved flowers. He overheard that there was a secret language in flowers and then he was determined to speak to her through them."

Adrien's mouth had dropped into an "O" shape.

A secret language in flowers? Like a secret code? That was pretty cool.

Adrien thought about Marinette's stuttering around him and pursed his lips.

Maybe he could get closer to Marinette as Adrien Agreste this way.

Marinette standing caught his attention. He was disappointed that she appeared to be leaving when he watched her dance around her garden in what appeared to be a ritual for the girl.

"Chrysanthemum for friendship, Daisies for innocence, Hydrangea for devotion," Marinette listed, flicking a leaf lovingly on a blue hydrangea.

Adrien was almost reminded of his Lady flicking his bell. It was odd.

"- Admirer is the meaning of a Gardenia, Sunflowers for adoration, forget me nots for rememberance," Marinette continued.

Adrien was surprised to learn that different colors for certain flowers meant different things.

It was hard for him to remember everything but he was happy to spend time with Marinette. Even if she didn't know it.

Finally after that, Marinette packed up and headed home.

Adrien didn't take off immediately, even though his father was probably going to get mad at him.

Instead, he looked around the garden, gloved fingers gently cupping the flowers as he leaned in to admire them.

The garden smelled amazing, beautiful, and... kind of like Marinette.

She had always smelt sweet, like baked goods but he could never distinguish the floral earthy notes in her scent before.

Now it made sense.

She smelled like an entire garden in the best way possible.

.

.

.

Adrien didn't know why but if he needed to breath and relax, or cry and calm down, or even just to be alone...

He would be at her garden.

If he ever suspected she would be there, he would wait and see if she showed up. Her voice was soothing, her stories amusing, and listening to her list the flowers and their meanings was always a treat.

She was constantly flushed from working, looking cute even in her gardening clothes.

Adrien had been surprised to catch her the day after a vigorous gardening session. Usually she came about twice a week.

This time she was more or less relaxed and causal, enjoying her private garden as she drew in her sketchbook.

Adrien sighed in contentment as he sat back down, hidden by the leafy covered trellis.

Eventually he found himself nodding off for a little catnap, ears attuned to the sound of her pencil scribbling on the paper.

Plagg woke him up that time, teasing the boy that Marinette had gone.

Adrien had expected the Kwami to be annoyed about the detours and to pick on him about the garden.

To his surprise Plagg seemed to enjoy it just as much.

"This really brings me back," Plagg hummed as the two were soaking up the sun one weekend.

"What do you mean?" Adrien asked, lying on the bench as he enjoyed the sun's beams.

"Well, Tikki likes berries and she enjoys flowers and stuff because I guess she's a ladybug Kwami. Me? I like the sun and to chase stuff. Sometimes I could take a bite out of the plants too. A garden is the perfect spot for both of us," Plagg explained.

Adrien hummed, the garden was most certainly the perfect place for Chat Noir, and his Princess too.

Adrien bolted up, cheeks burning.

He'd meant to imagine Ladybug and yet somehow Marinette had popped into mind.

He coughed awkwardly as Plagg shot him an annoyed look, the model interrupting his nap.

To be fair it was Marinette's garden.

.

.

.

Every time Adrien was caught in the garden with Marinette, usually by his own doing, he had the odd desire to get her flowers.

The thought always made him blush.

He was walking from a shoot one afternoon when he passed a flower shop and he immediately thought of Marinette.

Maybe he should try that communication thing with Marinette.

He walked into the shop bashfully as an older woman approached him.

"How can I help you?" She asked.

Adrien raised a hand to the back of his neck.

"I'm looking for a specific flower for my good friend, I recently learned that flowers have meaning and I want her to know I admire her," he said to the lady, "Do you have any gardenias?"

Adrien was thinking back to how Marinette had said they meant admiration.

What better way to progress their friendship than for him to tell her he admired her.

She was amazing after all.

The woman shot him a knowing smile.

Adrien only took one flower, anxious to get it into water so it would last until school the following day.

Plagg snickered as his chosen smiled at the flower in the small square glass.

"What is it Plagg?" Adrien said annoyed.

"Nothing. It's just you're giving flowers to your girlfriend," Plagg teased.

Adrien felt himself turn red.

"It isn't like that," he muttered, " And it's a flower."

He was simply going to tell her that he admired her.

As a friend.

That's all. She'd know what it meant. It wouldn't romantic at all. Just a friend giving another friend a message through a flower.

Plagg said nothing and just smirked at Adrien who whirled away from the plant and headed straight for bed.

.

.

.

Nino blinked at Adrien who was showing him the flower at recess.

"What do you think?" Adrien asked, puffing up with pride at his gift.

"A Gardenia?" Nino asked skeptically, eyes examining Adrien.

"Yep, Do you think Marinette will like it?" Adrien asked, once again rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Nino nodded slowly.

"Didn't think you had it in you man," Nino assured.

Adrien shrugged.

"I just want her to know I admire her," he explained.

Nino choked back a laugh as he got up and left to find Alya. Boy was Adrien about to get a surprise.

Said model didn't notice, content that he was finally going to get closer to Marinette.

By the end of the day, Adrien took the flower out of its container and tapped Marinette on the shoulder as the class filed out, Nino tugging Alya away.

"Marinette this is for you," Adrien said shyly as he handed her the flower.

Marinette cupped it in both hands and frowned as she looked up at him.

Adrien winced. Did he do something wrong?

"Adrien, why did you give me this?" She asked.

"Because I recently learned about the language of flowers," he said proudly.

Marinette gave him a small smile.

"Okay what do you think this means?" she asked as Adrien pursed his lips.

"Admiration right?" he replied.

Marinette laughed lightly.

"Okay, just so you know for future reference, this means secret love, it's something a secret admirer would give his love," she explained as Adrien felt his face heat up.

Marinette gave him a sympathetic look and handed him the flower back before bidding him goodbye.

Adrien looked at the flower in his hand feeling a weird sensation settle in his stomach.

It felt like... he'd just been rejected... and he hadn't even been trying to confess.

Alone in the class, Plagg buzzed out.

"Plagg why do I feel so crappy. It's just a little mistake I shouldn't feel like..." Adrien paused, "like I got my heart stepped on."

The black Kwami sighed. Boy, Adrien was dense.

"Kid I think you missed the entire point of Marinette's parents' love story," Plagg said, "Her father wanted to communicate with her mother because he liked her and couldn't say it himself. Kind of sounds like you."

Adrien felt his cheeks redden but immediately saw the connection.

"I- I like M-Marinette?" He stuttered.

Plagg just facepalmed in answer as Adrien gaped at the flower.

.

.

.

**A/N : So for those of you who may already know a bit about the secret language of flowers, if you notice a difference from what you know and what I wrote, I just want to say that different sources say different things. So it really is a personalized language between two people's understanding of a flower's meaning. But for the sake of the story I'm writing the flowers' meaning as I learned it. **


	2. Chapter 2 : Fall through Spring

Marinette sighed as she noticed the vines of the trellis hadn't shifted in quite awhile.

She knew exactly what that meant.

It was late fall and Marinette was preparing the garden for winter.

She glanced at the ivy on the trellis.

A smile crept onto her face as she pulled out the blanket she'd brought this time.

She snuck over to the back of the trellis to find Chat Noir curled up on the concrete.

Marinette giggled as she draped the blanket over him.

She rooted in her bag and laid a preserved chrysanthemum beside him.

It had been about mid summer when she'd finally noticed him.

She'd gone to prune the trellis vines and imagine her surprise to see Chat Noir asleep on the ground contentedly.

Marinette had decided not to wake him and after that became quite aware of his presence.

But now he should know she wouldn't be coming around with colder weather, which was why she left the flower.

To communicate with him.

The bluenette pulled out a forget me not. For remembrance.

She hoped he'd realize it meant that she'd no longer be dropping by, and if she did, not as often.

There just wasn't as much to do during the winter for her garden.

Marinette bit her lip as she looked down at Chat.

Unable to resist the urge, she gently brushed her hand over her messy blonde hair fondly.

After that she slung her backpack over her shoulders and slipped out of the small garden.

.

.

.

It had been about a week and a half since that day and Marinette hadn't thought anything of it.

That is until that night.

She was relaxing up in her room with a cup of hot cocoa when a knock on her window made her frown.

What was Chat doing here?

His eyes were large and full of distress which made her leap from her seat and let him in, worried about her partner.

She opened her mouth to voice her concern when a bouquet of pale pink peonies got shoved into her hand.

Their meaning was clear.

"I'm sorry?" Marinette said aloud in confusion as Chat dropped to his knee, staring at her feet as his ears and tail drooped.

Marinette frowned. She thought he'd understood her message perfectly clear. Though it was possible he'd messed up their meaning.

Marinette cringed as she though back to the Gardenia incident with Adrien that happened over the summer.

She'd been instantly suspicious and as much as she wanted to accept it as him confessing his feelings for her. She just couldn't. She knew there was something wrong and she was glad she brought it up.

Because it had been a mistake.

Marinette's heart constricted slightly in her chest and she shook her head, pigtails bouncing as she turned her focus to Chat.

Who looked as if she'd kicked him.

"Chat why are you sorry?" She asked.

He still wouldn't look at her, his frown just deepening.

Marinette let out a breath. Oh boy.

She took her hand and used a finger to tilt Chat's head so he had to look up at her.

That didn't mean she could make his eyes look at her though.

He was glancing to the side, lower lip trembling like a kid about to cry.

"Chat I'm not mad at you," she coaxed.

Chat looked at her finally, pouting, his eyes reminding her of Manon.

"But you never came back to the garden!" He blurted out.

Marinette kneeled to the floor to be at his level.

"Its going to be winter soon, I've finished prepping the garden so there's nothing left for me to do," Marinette explained gently.

Chat didn't look convinced.

"You left a forget me not, it means to remember, I thought you were never coming back because you were mad at me for -" Chat broke off.

Marinette tried not to laugh knowing he was going to say something along the lines of spying or stalking her.

"And then you never came back," Chat finished.

Marinette hummed.

"What about the chrysanthemum?" She asked, curious as to why he didn't mention it.

"You left me a friendship flower?" Chat asked, eye brows knit in confusion.

Marinette nodded and tapped a finger against her cheek, trying to figure out why he didn't see it.

Even if he'd rolled onto it, he should've seen it when he got up.

Chat cursed under his breath and Marinette noticed an annoyed look on his face.

He caught her stare and became flustered, face reddening a bit.

"What?" Marinette questioned.

She wanted an answer to this mystery, her curiosity was often as bad as his anyway.

"Plagg," Chat muttered under his breath.

"Plagg?" Marinette asked, pretending not to know what a Kwami was or that Tikki had specifically mentioned his Kwami.

"He's my kw- Er - cat. A stray that started following me around, he must've eaten the chrysanthemum because I think I did see a petal or two and when I woke up, and his tongue was really swollen.

Marinette's eyes widened.

"Um. Those are poisonous to cats," she pointed out.

Chat's mouth was pressed into a straight line.

"Yeah he threw up a flower later but I couldn't make out what it was," he muttered.

Marinette shuddered.

She didn't blame him. If the Kwami liked Camembert cheese like Tikki had told her, than that flower of Plagg's was probably the worst smelling flower in history.

"Yikes," Marinette muttered.

Chat laughed but then his expression fell.

"What's wrong?" Marinette asked, leaning forward to peer at his face.

Chat found himself leaning back and blushing furiously.

"I - Er - I'll miss the garden," he said half truthfully.

He would mostly be missing her.

Marinette smiled warmly at him.

"Next summer you can help me in the garden if you'd like," she offered.

Chat perked and snatched her hand, pressing a kiss against the back of it.

"I would love to Princess," he purred.

After that Marinette offered him a cup of cocoa and some treats, realizing later that he would probably return because she'd fed the stray.

Oddly enough, the thought didn't bother her.

In fact. She was also looking forward to gardening with him next summer.

Gardening was something she'd never want Adrien Agreste to see her do, she always wore such old ratty clothes.

But Chat was a good friend.

.

.

.

Even though it was winter it didn't stop Marinette and Chat from talking about flowers.

Marinette was curious about how much info he'd retained so she quizzed him on flower meanings.

He didn't do too bad, exceeding her expectations and impressing her.

He had asked her for help in improving though, saying he'd never want to mistake a flower's meaning.

Marinette had only chuckled at that one, remembering Adrien once again.

Her heart didn't even hurt to think about it anymore.

After that Chat started bringing her a flower a visit. Sometimes he'd bring a couple chrysanthemums a week, other times he'd mix up what he brought for an unmatched bouquet.

It had started off with very friendly flowers but when Marinette had received an orchid she had just looked at Chat and raised an eyebrow.

His gaze and voice were unusually soft and sincere when he'd replied.

"Because you are indeed beautiful Princess," he murmured.

Marinette had turned bright red at that one, quickly excusing herself to find a vase so she had a chance to cool down.

.

.

.

Marinette took the pink and white ombré tulip from Chat without a word.

She was aware his eyes were on her, looking for a reaction.

She was also aware of his smirk - which made her scowl - as he noticed her blush.

"Now you're just teasing me!" She complained.

Chat strode over to her and trapped her in a friendly hug as he nuzzled her hair affectionately.

He'd just been getting more and more comfortable around her lately.

It seemed to translate into touchy cat like behavior.

"Your eyes are beautiful though Princess!" He argued.

Marinette sighed and reassured herself that he was just in a tulip kick.

It was almost spring time. Which meant gardening.

She smiled at the thought and then dead panned at another.

She swore to god if he brought in red (deep love) or white (eternal love) tulips then she would throw them off her balcony.

"And what about the purple tulip a few visits ago?" Marinette huffed.

Now that had to be teasing. Purple tulips were for royalty. Marinette snorted. Which she was most certainly not.

"What? You're a Princess," Chat defended.

Marinette shook her head but couldn't help her smile.

.

.

.

It had been a few days later when Marinette received her next visit. It was unexpected and.

Loud.

CRASH!

Marinette jumped up and rushed to her trap door, throwing it open as she saw Chat on the ground.

Her heart skipped a beat as she rushed to his side.

Was he hurt?

A Calla Lilly shoved into her face answered her question.

"Chat I was worried about you!" She hissed as she held the flower close to her heart.

Chat looked up at her with a goofy expression.

"Better put it in water Princess, or it'll wither. Pretty flowers need water," he giggled.

Marinette reeled back.

What was wrong with him?

He was acting like a drunk.

She pulled him to his feet and felt herself redden as she leaned close to his face to see if she could smell alcohol off his breath.

Nope.

Minty fresh.

"Want a taste too?" He murmured with a smirk.

Marinette glared at him.

Whatever had happened to him.

Well now he was twice as insufferable as normal.

Marinette had only just added the Lilly to her vase when Chat wrapped his arms around her.

She expected a hair nuzzle but jumped when he licked her neck.

She flew across the room to put some well needed distance between them.

"What is wrong with you!" She cried as loudly as she dared with her sleeping parents.

Chat looked dejected and scuffed his boot against her floor shyly.

"When I went to get you a flower they got a shipment of catnip in," he muttered.

Marinette felt her eye twitch.

HE WASN'T A REAL CAT!

She took a deep breath.

Well, he did purr. And chase laser pointers.

Marinette giggled as he remembered the time she'd made him run into a wall.

By accident of course.

Next thing she knew Chat had picked her up bridal style and was carrying to her bed.

"Chat!" She squeaked in protest.

She was not above screaming for her parents.

But how would she explain to them that he'd been visiting her for quite awhile...

"I just want to cuddle," said kitty whined as he threw her onto her bed.

Marinette did her best to try to scramble of it only to be trapped by Chat who pressed his face into the crook of her neck.

"Pretty Flower. Preeeeety floweeeer," he cooed.

Marinette groaned.

Mon Dieu, it was going to be a loooong night.

.

.

.

When Marinette woke up the next morning she found the largest bouquet of forgiveness flowers in her life.

White and pale pink peonies even fell out of said bouquet.

Marinette could only imagine what had happened.

Chat Noir must've woken up, completely back to himself only to semi remember what he'd done. Or even remember all the events that had transpired.

How mortifying.

Marinette could only imagine his horror. It had been quite horrifying to endure.

.

.

.

Marinette was not surprised when Chat sheepishly showed up that evening with yet another bouquet of forgive me peonies.

His hand strayed to the back of his neck as she relieved him of the flowers.

"So um. What did I do?" He asked.

The peonies hit the floor as Marinette spun around to face him.

"You seriously don't remember?" She exclaimed.

Chat's face reddened.

"Not enough," he choked out.

Marinette laughed, the sound making him even redder.

"Okay, So first of you brought me a Calla Lily," she began, watching his face for change.

He shrugged that one off.

"Then you licked me," she listed.

Chat stiffened at that and all the color returned to his cheeks.

"I- I - w- what?" He stuttered.

"You licked me," Marinette sighed.

Judging by his expression she would probably have a truckload of peonies.

"I'm so sorry!" He groaned.

Marinette held up a hand and smiled.

She was almost enjoying this and it was almost worth dealing with high Chat.

Almost.

"There's more," she said.

Chat looked like he wanted a black hole to open up under him and swallow him whole.

"You picked me up and threw me on my bed because you wanted to cuddle me," she continued, "then you wouldn't let me go."

Chat nodded dumbly.

"AND you called me a pretty flower," Marinette couldn't help but laugh at the last part.

Chat turned his back to her and flung her window open.

"Hey where are you going?" Marinette asked.

"I should end my life now because I'm already dying of embarrassment," he said casually.

"Was cuddling me really that bad or do you really not think I'm pretty?" Marinette teased.

Chat whirled around and stalked over to her, face flushed as he leaned over her.

"Princess I've told you you're beautiful when I wasn't... on catnip... and," Chat's blush deepened, "and I'm actually unhappy that I don't remember cuddling you."

Marinette felt her mouth make an "o" shape.

She'd just been teasing him and yet...

Yet he was quick to reassure her that he cared. That he did think she was beautiful.

"I wish I had some pink tulips," she murmured quietly.

"Confessing Princess?" Chat teased, his eyes filled with mischief.

"Dang I said that out loud!" She cursed.

Chat smiled fondly at her.

He wish he had red tulips to give her.

Because she had completely and utterly stolen his heart, even from his Lady.


End file.
